State Highlights: CVS-Aetna Deal Raises Concerns With New York Regulators; Texas Ordered To Hire More State Workers To Oversee Foster Kids

Bloomberg: New York State Considers Blocking Segments Of CVS-Aetna Merger 
New York state officials are considering blocking parts of the $68 billion merger of drugstore store chain CVS Health Corp. and Aetna Inc., jeopardizing billions of dollars in insurance premiums for Aetna. CVS and Aetna won approval from the U.S. Justice Department on Oct. 10, contingent on Aetna divesting its Medicare Part D business, which covers prescription drugs for seniors. But the deal still needs to pass through state regulatory bodies. (Dodge, 10/18)

Dallas Morning News: Court Says Texas Must Hire More State Workers To Protect Foster Kids, A 'Huge Victory For Children'
A federal appeals court has upheld a lower court's ruling that Texas must hire more of two types of protective-services employees who check on foster kids who are lingering in the state's custody after being removed from their birth families. But U.S. District Judge Janis Graham Jack of Corpus Christi went too far in prescribing how quickly the state must build up a better quantity and geographic dispersal of foster homes and treatment beds for kids in long-term foster care, the appellate judges ruled Thursday. (Garrett, 10/18)

Austin American-Statesman: Appeals Court Rejects Many Fixes Ordered For Texas Foster Care
The state of Texas has failed to adequately address severely overburdened caseworkers, routinely exposing children in foster care to physical and psychological harm, a federal appeals court determined Thursday. Even so, the 5th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said a federal judge went too far when she ordered Texas to make sweeping changes to its foster care system in January, including a cap on the number of children overseen by each caseworker and a ban on foster children sleeping in state offices. (Lindell, 10/18)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Blue Cross To Exit Obamacare Market In Some Georgia Counties
With open enrollment for Obamacare weeks away, Blue Cross customers across several Georgia counties have received letters from the insurance giant saying their health plan will no longer exist there next year. (Hart, 10/18)

The Wall Street Journal: NYC Health Department To Lead National Charge To Cut Sugar Intake
In an effort to decrease the amount of sugar in the food supply and stem a rise in obesity, the New York City Health Department will roll out on Friday a new effort pushing companies to significantly cut the sugar in packaged foods and drinks by 2025. The National Salt and Sugar Reduction Initiative, as it is being called, comprises a coalition of health departments across the country and other non-profits. Though voluntary for companies, the program builds on the work of a similar effort begun in 2009 aimed at reducing salt in foods. (West, 10/19)

Atlanta Journal-Constitution: Atlanta VA Temporarily Moves Key Staff After Hospital’s Downgrade
The Atlanta VA Medical Center shuffled some of its top leaders Thursday after it was designated one of the worst in the nation. The changes, which are mostly temporary, took place as internal watchdogs with the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs look into why the hospital’s quality rating dropped to one star out of a possible five. (Mariano, 10/18)

The Associated Press: Hospital Says $2M Robot Enhances Surgery, Saves Money
A Delaware hospital says its new $2.1 million robot has performed more than 50 surgeries since it was introduced. The Beebe Medical Center’s Lewes Center for Robotic Surgery opened this summer. Robotic program head Dr. Kurt Wehberg tells The News Journal robot-assisted surgeries are less invasive than traditional procedures. And he says that translates into benefits for patients and practitioners alike. (10/18)

Arizona Republic: Arizona Course On Vaccines Canceled After Parental Backlash
The pilot online course, modeled after programs in Oregon and Michigan, was created in response to the rising number of Arizona schoolchildren skipping school-required immunizations against diseases like measles, mumps and whooping cough because of their parents' beliefs. But some parents, who were worried the optional course was going to become mandatory, complained to the Governor's Regulatory Review Council, which reviews regulations to ensure they are necessary and do not adversely affect the public. (Innes, 10/18)

Nashville Tennessean: Tennessee Home Hid Elderly Resident In Caring Estates 'Storage' Room
An elder care home in a Memphis suburb has been ordered to stop accepting new patients after employees stashed an off-the-books resident in what was described as a storage closet in an attempt to hide her from police and state inspectors. Inspection records also say employees failed to elevate the legs of another resident, which led to her developing an ulcer due to lack of blood circulation. That resident died within a month of being transferred out of the facility. (Kelman, 10/18)

Detroit Free Press: Pharmacist Who Denied Miscarriage Meds Not Working For Meijer
Meijer issued a statement Thursday about a Petoskey pharmacist accused of denying medication in July to a miscarrying woman because of his religious beliefs. He also  refused to transfer the prescription to another drugstore, the woman says. While the company didn't go as far as to say that it fired the pharmacist, it did say he is no longer an employee. (Shamus, 10/18)

Chicago Tribune: Lake Forest Drugmaker Akorn Appeals Ruling Against $4.75 Billion Merger With German Firm 
Akorn is appealing a Delaware judge’s ruling earlier this month allowing a German health care company to abandon plans to acquire the drugmaker in a deal worth $4.75 billion. The Delaware Chancery Court judge sided in his ruling with Fresenius Kabi, which announced in April that it would terminate its agreement to acquire Akorn, headquartered in Lake Forest. The day of that ruling, shares of Akorn dropped by more than 50 percent. (Schencker, 10/18)

WBUR: There Are Now 2 Cannabis Labs With The State's Official OK To Test Marijuana For Sale
The state's Cannabis Control Commission has granted final licenses to a pair of independent testing laboratories. The move is seen as the clearing of one of the final hurdles standing in the way of the state's first marijuana retail sales. (Brown, 10/18)

Boston Globe: State Will Consider Allowing Pot Delivery
Massachusetts cannabis regulators are considering a plan to permit home delivery of marijuana across the state — but only by small, locally-owned companies. At the Thursday meeting of the Cannabis Control Commission, commissioner Britte McBride proposed allowing so-called “microbusinesses” — firms owned by Massachusetts residents that grow and process limited quantities of marijuana — to deliver marijuana and marijuana-infused products to consumers’ homes. (Adams, 10/18)